Chandelier by Gino Sarfatti for Arteluce, 1958

About This Piece

Vintage Design

Click here for full description Close description

* The cable of this item may be original and might need replacement, if not specified otherwise.

Creator	Gino Sarfatti
Manufacturer	Arteluce
Design Period	1950 to 1959
Production Period	1960 to 1969
Country of Manufacture	Italy
Identifying Marks	This piece has been attributed based on archival documentation, such as vintage catalogs, designer records, or other literature sources
Style	Vintage, Design Classics
Detailed Condition	Very Good — This vintage item has no defects, but it may show slight traces of use.
	The vendor has confirmed this piece is in working order.
Restoration and Damage Details	Light wear consistent with age and use
Plug Type	European Plug (up to 250V)
Product Code	VG-1072669
Materials	Chrome Plating
Color	Silver
Height	80 cm 80 cm
Diameter	90 cm

Shipping & Delivery

Ships from	Belgium
Returns	Returns accepted within fourteen days of delivery, except for Made-to-order items

Delivery Options

Front Door Delivery: (Included in Every Order)	A skilled driver will unload the item(s) from the delivery truck and bring it to your building’s doorstep. You will be responsible for further transport beyond that point. We recommend asking a family member or friend for an extra hand; alternatively, you may upgrade to In-Home Delivery (see below). The delivery partner will email and/or call you at least one day in advance to arrange a delivery time. A wooden crate may be used for intercontinental shipments for maximum protection. Item will be left in its packaging after delivery. A signature will be required upon delivery.
In-Home Delivery: (For in-home delivery service, additional fees apply. Please get in touch)	A skilled driver or a team of two will bring your item(s) inside your home and place it in the immediate entryway. For unusually large or heavy items, we recommend asking a family member or friend for an extra hand, as we cannot send more than 2 drivers. The delivery partner will email and/or call you one day in advance to arrange a delivery time. A wooden crate may be used for intercontinental shipments for maximum protection. Item will be left in its packaging after delivery. A signature will be required upon delivery.

Front Door Delivery:
(Included in Every Order)

A skilled driver will unload the item(s) from the delivery truck and bring it to your building’s doorstep. You will be responsible for further transport beyond that point. We recommend asking a family member or friend for an extra hand; alternatively, you may upgrade to In-Home Delivery (see below).
The delivery partner will email and/or call you at least one day in advance to arrange a delivery time.
A wooden crate may be used for intercontinental shipments for maximum protection.
Item will be left in its packaging after delivery.
A signature will be required upon delivery.

In-Home Delivery:
(For in-home delivery service, additional fees apply. Please get in touch)

A skilled driver or a team of two will bring your item(s) inside your home and place it in the immediate entryway. For unusually large or heavy items, we recommend asking a family member or friend for an extra hand, as we cannot send more than 2 drivers.
The delivery partner will email and/or call you one day in advance to arrange a delivery time.
A wooden crate may be used for intercontinental shipments for maximum protection.
Item will be left in its packaging after delivery.
A signature will be required upon delivery.

*Important Note

Please examine every order upon delivery. In the event that there are visible signs of damage or missing or incorrect pieces, please indicate the problem on the Delivery Note and contact us within 48 hours of delivery. A signed delivery receipt without notations of missing, damaged, or incorrect item(s) represents your acceptance of the complete order in perfect condition.

About the Creator

Gino Sarfatti

Born in Venice in 1912, Gino Sarfatti studied aero-naval engineering at the University of Genoa. In 1939, he launched Arteluce, a modern lighting design firm that quickly established itself as a successful international brand, as well as a meeting place for many of the leading Italian designers of the time.

Over the course of his career, Sarfatti designed over 400 lamps, dedicating himself throughout to technical, material, and production research and experimentation. In the mid 1950s, he began to work with Plexiglas, and in the early ’70s, he pioneered the incorporation of halogen bulbs into fixtures. Notable designs include the 1958 Sarfatti pendant lamp.

Sarfatti and Arteluce won several awards, including the Compasso d’Oro in 1954 and 1955. Flos acquired Arteluce in 1973, before Sarfatti died in Gravedona in 1985.

About the Maker

Arteluce

Italian lighting design company Arteluce was established in 1939 by the young Venetian designer-entrepreneur Gino Sarfatti. Political upheaval at the time forced Sarfatti to abandon his aeronautical engineering degree in Genoa and move with his family to Milan. There, despite a lack of formal design training, Sarfatti embarked on a lighting career. Yet it is arguably because he was wholly self-taught that Sarfatti immersed himself in the full lifecycle of the design process, from conception to production, collaborating with artisans and architects to create stronger, lighter, and cheaper modernist lamps than Italy has seen before.

During the Second World War, Sarfatti fled to Switzerland, returning to Milan after the war to restart his company. In 1951, Arteluce’s first retail outlet opened on the bustling Corso Vittorio in central Milan (now named Corso Matteotti). The shop was re-designed by Marco Zanuso in 1953. Arteluce's second outlet, located on the glamorous Via della Spiga, was designed by Sarfatti's lifelong friend and fellow lighting designer Vittoriano Viganò in 1961.

Arteluce quickly established itself as a successful and visionary lighting brand thanks to Sarfatti’s commitment to technical, material, and production research. He designed over 400 lamps in his lifetime (though some sources say it was as many as 700), which are celebrated for their minimalist yet expressive aesthetic and experimental materials. In the mid-1950s, he began to work with Plexiglas, and, in the early 1970s, he pioneered the use of halogen bulbs into fixtures. Sarfatti also dedicated himself to improving every single element of a light fitting, from the switch to the wiring and the reflectors. The ultra-minimal Model 1063 (1954) would influence Italian floor lamp design for years to come. It was awarded the prestigious “Grand Prix” at the Milan Triennale and is known as the most eloquent example of Sarfatti's purist vision of beauty in everyday objects. In the same year, Arteluce was awarded the ADI Compasso d’Oro for the Model 559 and again the following year for the Model 1055.

In the 1960s, Arteluce became a creative hub for Italy’s most talented designers, producing designs by major talents, such as Franco Albini, Cini Boeri, Franca Helg, Ico Parisi, and Massimo Vignelli. The lighting installation for the Teatro Regio opera house in Turin—one of Arteluce's last projects, which comprised hundreds of pendant plexiglas tubes installed under the direction of legendary architect Carlo Mollino in 1972—is considered one of the company's greatest achievements.

In 1973, Sarfatti sold his business to Flos and retired to Lake Como. Many Arteluce creations are still in production today, and several original models are housed permanently in important museums like MoMA in New York. Somewhat forgotten after merging with Flos, Sarfatti’s designs are experiencing a renaissance amongst vintage collectors following the first retrospective exhibition of his work at the Triennale Design Museum in Milan in 2012.

* Images courtesy of Flos